Spring is finally in the air, and just as we have been looking forward to once again hearing the sounds of the birds chirping, seeing the colors of fresh flowers growing around us and feeling the warmth of the sunshine on our skin, we also look forward to the many exciting things God has in store for the children of ALWC in the upcoming months! If you’re new to KidzNewz, we welcome you! As an extension of the Abundant Life Worship Center Kidz Ministry, it is our goal to keep you informed about what’s happening and what to expect in the weeks and months ahead. Please read on to find out more…

ARTICLES IN THIS EDITION:

Sunday School Newz – Sis. Linda Rosa
Children’s Choir Gears Up for Easter
Quarterly SWAT Outreach – Christina Calabrese
WWW.WednesdayWeeknightWorkshops – Jennifer Henderson
KidZone Contest – Prize Activity Scheduled for April 29th
Lessons for Life – What are My Children Learning?
Honor Your Father and Your Mother – Debbie McDaniel
KidsFest “Mysteriously” Approaching – Sis. Linda Rosa
Kidz Church Graduation – Christina Calabrese
Pics of “Dad & Me”
Summer Missions – Debbie McDaniel
ALCS Enrollment Underway For 09-10 School Year – Maria Ficchi
Wee Praisers Promotion For 4-Year-Olds

CHILDREN’S CHOIR GEARS UP FOR EASTER

Please be sure to have your child at the church by 9:00 A.M.

The children’s choir will be singing two beautiful songs this Easter during our Resurrection Sunday celebration service on April 12th.

Please be sure to have your child at the church at least 45 minutes before the start of the service. We will need to use this time to get the children lined up and to have a final practice with them. Dress code is simply their “Sunday Best” – A dress, skirt or dressy slacks with a nice top is acceptable for the girls, and a pair of slacks with a nice top for the boys. Please no sweats, blue jeans or t-shirts. The children’s choir will be opening the service, so if your child is not on time, it is possible he or she will not be able to sing. So please be sure to get them there on time!

We are also going to be working on a song for the Children’s Choir that they will be singing on Father’s Day, Sunday, June 21st. Please be on the look-out for additional information on this as it becomes available after Easter.

SUNDAY SCHOOL NEWZ

MANNERS & CUSTOMS OF BIBLE TIMES

– Sis. Linda Rosa

Beginning Sunday, April 5th, the children will be studying the culture and customs of Bible times during the Sunday School hour from 9:00 to 9:45 am.

This study will help them to gain a deeper understanding of the Word of God as it applies to the lives of those for whom it was written, past and present. The series will be taken from a book entitled, Manners & Customs of Bible Times, from the Illustrated Bible Summary Series. The following excerpt from the Introduction of the book beautifully summarizes the objective of this class:

Christians agree that the Bible is vital to our spiritual life. Through the teaching of Scripture we learn the message of salvation (Acts 16:31), and through the Scriptures we grow to maturity in Christ (1 Peter 2:2). Since the Word of God is vital to our salvation and spiritual growth, it is equally vital that we understand the Word. But the Scriptures were written 2,000 to 3,400 years ago; moreover, the Bible was written in a culture very different from ours. How are we to understand these ancient writings from a foreign culture?

That is the purpose of this study. To enhance our understanding of the Bible, we must understand the culture in which the Bible was written. Manners & Customs of Bible Times is designed to remove the barrier to understanding by illuminating these aspects of ancient eastern culture:

      - Home life
      - Cuisine
      - Clothing
      - Educational system
      - Occupations
      - City life

In short, this series will open your children’s eyes in their future study of the Scriptures. Please bring your children to Sunday School so they can participate in this intriguing study of the customs of ancient Israel and grow in their knowledge and understanding of the living Word of God!

QUARTERLY SWAT OUTREACH

– Christina Calabrese

One of the main objectives of the SWAT Team ministry is to provide opportunities for the 5th and 6th graders to reach out to others in need, whether it is financially, physically, socially or otherwise.

This April, we will be visiting a local Nursing Home to bring the elderly a little bit of sunshine for their Easter Sunday. The kids typically serve some special snacks, sing a song and just minister a smile or encouraging word to raise the spirits of the residents and shine their lights for Jesus. Please be sure to sign a permission slip for this event so your 5th or 6th grader can participate. Also, if you are able to help out by providing a snack item, please indicate this on your child’s permission slip.

WWW.WednesdayWeeknightWorkshops

– Jennifer Henderson

If you’re not accustomed to attending the Wednesday evening services, try it! You will love the intimate setting in the adult service, your teens will enjoy the Youth break-out groups and your children will find it easy and exciting to participate in WWW!

Even if a series has already started, your child can still choose which workshop he or she would like to attend. We have plenty of people to show them the ropes! Not only are the workshops fun and educational, but kids can also earn prizes for attending and learning Scripture verses that pertain to the workshops of their choice.
Don’t miss the upcoming series starting on March 25th…

STAGE COMBAT – Learn how to reenact exciting Bible stories like the many battles fought and won by Israel with Joshua as her commander in chief.

“CLAYMATION” – Learn to make stories come to life through the art of clay and media.

TEACHER TRAINING – Learn to develop lessons, create crafts and structure a class, then use that knowledge to teach one of our younger classes during a Sunday morning service.

The EXPO for this series will take place on Wednesday, May 13th (Please encourage your children to study their memory verses for the EXPO!), followed by a new round of outdoor workshops for the late Spring and early Summer months….

Skateboarding, Carpentry & Woodworking, Christian Hip-Hop & Break dancing

Do you know which workshops YOUR child will choose?

KIDZONE CONTEST

– PRIZE ACTIVITY SCHEDULED FOR APRIL 29TH

This quarter’s KidZone contest will end in early April, and the prize activity will take place on Wed., April 29th during our Family Night service.

Parents, please help your children compete by reminding them to bring their Bibles to church every Sunday, encouraging them to invite a friend, asking them about what they learned in KidzChurch, and prompting them to learn their memory verses and study their lessons. So far the girls are winning again, but there’s still time! Come on boys, you can turn it around!

LESSONS FOR LIFE – WHAT ARE MY CHILDREN LEARNING?

WEE PRAISERS (AGES 2-3) – by Lori Sica
Exciting things are happening in the Wee Praisers Class. During the early part of Spring, we will be learning about and participating in intercessory prayer. Many prayer requests have come in and we are standing in the gap and seeking God to meet all of these needs. It is incredible to see the very young crying out to God – it not only increases their faith, but ours as well. If you have a prayer need, please write it down and drop it off in our classroom. We anticipate the Lord doing great things!

TRUE BELIEVERS (GRADES PRE-K – KINDERGARTEN) – by Donna Miller
The True Believers Class is having so much fun learning the foundational principles of Christianity. Our kids are instructed through different stories from the Bible about God's daily provision, protection, and the importance of spending time with Him. The weekly lessons discuss different ways to bless God through words, choices, and behaviors in the everyday life of a young child. We encourage all parents to review the lessons with their children after services and reinforce these Godly truths.

GOD SEEKERS & YOUNG DISCIPLES (GRADES 1-4) – by Debbie McDaniel
For the Months of March, April & May, the children in grades 1-4 are learning about different characters in the Bible, starting in the Old Testament. There are so many great men & women to choose from, and each week we break down the life of a character from the time he or she was first mentioned in the Bible to the time they were mentioned no more. We find that spending time learning about one person each week, their likes & dislikes, the call on their life, and the work they accomplished for the Lord helps the children to remember the person and almost feel as if they have met this person before because they know so much about them. Some weeks we even sample food from the culture of that time as we learn about how each specific character lived. What is so special about this person? How did he live? What did she do for the Lord? What was going on in history when they came on the scene? These are questions we are seeking to answer for the children so they can tell others with confidence and assurance everything about these special men and women of God, and learn from their examples.

SWAT TEAM (GRADES 5-6) – by Christina Calabrese
The SWAT Team has been very busy digging into the Bible through their study into the book, “30 Days to Understanding the Bible”. In this study, the kids are learning everything from how many books are in the Bible to basic geography and history of the Bible. It is helping them to get a better understanding of the hows, wheres and whys of the various characters, events and places in the Bible, making the Word of God more interesting and alive to them. As the leader of this group, it is my deep desire to see these kids mature in the things of God so that they in turn can help others. The focus for the SWAT Team going forward will be 1 John 4:19, “We love each other because He loved us first.” Please feel free to stop by and listen in on a class or talk with me directly if you have any ideas or questions.

KIDSFEST “MYSTERIOUSLY” APPROACHING

– Sis Linda Rosa

That’s right, it’s almost KidsFest time once again! This year we are privileged to have the ALWC Youth working on an awesome production of a “Mystery Theater”.

As always, there will be prizes, fun and lots of high-action adventure as children team together to crack a puzzling case! The whole family will enjoy being a part of the action, so be sure to mark your calendars for Wednesday, June 10th at 6:15 pm. Tell your kids to invite their friends and cousins. A grand prize will be awarded to the child who brings the most friends. Registration will begin in early May. If you are available to help out in any area, please see a Children’s Ministry leader after one of our regular services. We specifically need families to hand out flyers at local retail establishments on the Saturdays and Sundays leading up to KidsFest. Also, we are in need of lots of different props for this year’s Mystery Theater. If you have any of the following items that you could lend to us for the night, we would greatly appreciate it. Please see Joseph Arminio or Nikki Siegel if you can help out in this area, or you can shoot an email to ALWCKIDZ@YAHOO.COM.

KIDZ CHURCH GRADUATION

– Christina Calabrese

Sunday, June 14th is graduation day. The 6th graders will be graduating into Youth, and boy will we miss them.

Some of the 6th graders we have nurtured and taught since they were new-born in the Little Lambs Nursery. Although it is sometimes hard to see them go, it gives us great joy to watch them growing up in the Lord! Before we release them in June, however, we will be coordinating some individual mentoring for them from our College & Career Youth group. These 18-25 year-olds will be coming in to talk with the kids in smaller settings to discuss what to expect with the new transition to Youth. It will be a time of new beginnings for them, and we want them to have someone they have already connected with before they move into this new chapter in their young lives.

SUMMER MISSIONS

– Debbie McDaniel

This summer the first thru sixth graders (SWAT Team, Young Disciples & God Seekers) will be taking Summer Missions to a new level. They will be connecting with our daughter church in Brazil.

This church, Abundant Life Worship Center of San Leopoldo, Brazil, began just a few years ago when the Ramos family was sent out by Pastor Joe and the church body here in Whippany to their home country of Brazil to start a work for the Lord. For the months of July & August, the children will have an opportunity every Sunday morning to give a special missions offering to benefit the work in Brazil. Then, on August 2nd, the children will be setting up a Brazilian market right here at the church, where they will be selling Brazilian candies, cakes, cold drinks & even Brazilian coffee (iced or hot). All proceeds will go toward the purchase of items to meet the needs of our extended ALWC family in Brazil. By way of letters and videos from the Ramos family, we will together experience the life of a family in Brazil. Each week we will learn something new and fascination about the country and the people of Brazil. We will sample food, try on native clothing, take post card pictures, and learn about the differences in culture and church life. As we prepare for this exciting adventure, we would like to appeal to you parents…. If you have any articles from Brazil that you would be willing to share with the children, please see Christina Calabrese or Debbie Mc Daniel back in the children’s ministry wing any Sunday morning before or after services. Another way you can help is by reminding your children to bring their missions offering in every Sunday throughout the summer months. We will have more information for you as this missions adventure draws near.

ALCS ENROLLMENT UNDERWAY FOR

2009-2010 SCHOOL YEAR

– Maria Ficchi

“For the LORD gives wisdom; From his mouth come knowledge and understanding;”
Proverbs 2:6.

Scripture teaches that the source of all knowledge, wisdom, and truth is GOD. The vision of the Abundant Life Christian School (ALCS) is to impact our young people through Christian education so that they may be fully equipped with the message of the Gospel to reach their world for Christ. Today, more than ever, our youth need to feel competent, special and worthwhile throughout daily interactions within school and with those in the world around them. It is our goal to make each individual student strive toward his or her God-given potential. We, at Abundant Life Christian School, believe that God has entrusted us with the great responsibility of guiding young people as they continue to grow spiritually, academically, mentally, emotionally, socially, and physically.

2009-2010 grades offered: K - 12th

Allow us to work with you in providing an educational experience of the highest quality for your child. For more information please contact: Miss Ficchi 973.463.9455 X32

WEE PRAISERS PROMOTION FOR 4-YEAR-OLDS

The next promotion planned for 4-year-olds from the Wee Praisers class to the True Believers class is scheduled for the first Sunday in July – Sunday, July 5th.

If your child turns 4 before July, please wait to start him or her in the True Believers class until that date. The transition is much easier for both students and teachers if the children come over together in a group. This gives the True Believers leader and teachers the opportunity to prepare for new students and it provides a sense of security for the little ones in that they have friends with whom they can venture into the unknown of a new classroom and environment. If your child turns 4 after July 5th, the next promotion will be the first Sunday in October.

CALENDAR OF EVENTS

SUN., APRIL 12TH RESURRECTION SUNDAY SERVICE – Children’s Choir singing

THUR., APRIL 16TH Happy birthday Sis. Debbi!

WED., APRIL 29TH KidZone Prize Activity (plus special lesson for “non-winners”)

SUN., MAY 10TH Mother’s Day

WED., MAY 13TH WWW – Expo (Remind your kids to memorize their verses!)

WED., MAY 27TH WWW – New rotation begins

WED., JUNE 10TH KidsFest – “Mystery Theatre 2” – 6:15 pm

SUN., JUNE 14TH Kidz Church Graduation

SUN., JUNE 21ST Father’s Day

SUN., JULY 5TH 4-yr. old Promotion from Wee Praisers to True Believers
                          New Sunday School quarter begins KidZone contest winner determined

WED., JULY 22ND WWW – Expo (Remind your kids to memorize their verses!)

WED., JULY 29TH KidZone Prize Activity (plus special lesson for “non-winners”)